Dustin Poirier claims UFC 257 encounter against Conor McGregor isn't about retribution

Dustin Poirier has claimed that he won't have vengeance on his mind when he steps inside the Octagon to run it back with Conor McGregor at UFC 257 on January 23rd 2021.

Dustin Poirier will be hoping for a different outcome when he faces McGregor in a rematch of their featherweight bout at UFC 178. During their first fight, Poirier got knocked out in less than two minutes in the very first round.

Ahead of the fight, there were a lot of heated exchanges between Dustin Poirier and Conor McGregor. The latter is well-known for trying to get inside the head of his opponents ahead of fights, and it was evident that all the pre-fight trash-talk helped Conor get inside Poirier's skin. This affected The Diamond during the fight, but he claims that this time, things will be vastly different and he won't let his emotions get the better of him.

In a recent interview with MMA Junkie, Dustin Poirier revealed that he got emotional during the first fight and wanted to hurt McGregor badly inside the Octagon. This time around, Poirier said he will enter the Octagon with a healthy mindset and look to outsmart and, subsequently, defeat his opponent.

Dustin Poirier further stated that the rematch is all about business and he isn't thinking about revenge.

“I was emotional in the first one. I wanted to hurt the guy. This time I just want to outsmart him, just want to beat him. This is business. This isn’t any ill will towards the guy. When I was younger, I used to fight with a lot of emotion. This isn’t the same thing for me. This isn’t about getting even for me. This isn’t like a revenge type of thing for me. This is about moving my career forward, about putting my family in a better spot. It’s not trying to get back a guy who got me. This is just business.”

Dustin Poirier said that he has matured a lot over the years since his first encounter with McGregor, and is not reflecting on the first fight as he prepares for the rematch.

“It’s kind of the same, honestly,” Poirier said. “Going into the Max fight I knew he was a different fighter. I knew I was a different fighter. I couldn’t really draw any momentum from the first fight, and kind of same here with this. This is a completely different fight. We’re both completely different fighters, and I’m not really looking back at that first fight.”

Dustin Poirier hails Conor McGregor as one of the best counter-punchers in the UFC

Dustin Poirier knows that he will be facing one of the best strikers in the game when he fights Conor. Poirier praised the Irishman by saying that he is a "great counter-puncher."

He added that people often underestimate his grappling skills because McGregor has four submission defeats in his career. Dustin Poirier said that he will not underestimate McGregor in any aspect of the game.

“I can tell you the guy has one of the best counter-twos in the game. No doubt about it. His timing, his balance, his understanding of distance when guys are being too heavy on their front foot and throwing power shots. He’s a great counter puncher. I give him credit for that. I think people, because he’s been submitted, he’s such a big puncher, people underestimate his ground game. I think his jiu-jitsu and his grappling is better than people give him credit for. I really do. I’m not underestimating this guy in any aspect of mixed martial arts. "

Conor McGregor will return to the Octagon after a year-long absence since his TKO win against fight game veteran Donald Cerrone in a welterweight clash at UFC 246.

McGregor's last fight at lightweight was against Khabib Nurmagomedov at UFC 229 back in 2018. The Irishman ended up losing the fight via fourth round submission.

The last time McGregor won a fight in the lightweight division was against Eddie Alvarez way back in 2016. Conor McGregor holds a 22-4 career record.